One of the first really impressive TV shows to be released on
Blu-ray, The Planet Earth, has been the go-to disc in my house
to illustrate to visitors the quality of Blu-ray discs. The
documentary series from the BBC is both visually
stunning and thoroughly captivating. Filled with images of
animals
and nature that have never been shown before, this is a unique look at
our planet. The Blu-ray presentation is simply gorgeous with a
picture
that just jumps off the screen. The original release was earlier
this year with The Planet Earth:
Special Edition that had the same amazing picture and sound but
added a slew of quality extras. Now the BBC has released a
limited edition of the SE set in an amazingly cool globe that houses
the discs.

One of the most (if not the most) expensive nature shows ever
produced,
The Planet Earth had a budget of approximately $25
million.
It was filmed over a five year period and utilized over 200 locations
in
62 countries. While those figures are impressive, they don't
begin
to prepare viewers for the amazing sights that are contained in each
episode.
This is really a ground breaking series, since it utilizes technology
that
hadn't been previously used in shows about animal life and the
environment.
Not only was the series filmed in high definition, but they employed a
new camera system that was able to let them do things filmmakers
couldn't
do in the past. This system could be mounted on the bottom of a
helicopter
and still obtain a still, non-jerky image. Very powerful lenses
were
used too, allowing the creators to get crystal clear close-ups from a
very
long distance away.

In
just about every nature show about Africa you'll see an aerial shot of
a herd of Wildebeest thundering across the plains. This is
because
once the helicopter came near the animals, they became startled and
ran.
That doesn't happen in this series. With their advanced camera set up,
the creators could fly high enough so that the animals on the ground
didn't
even know they were there. This is a key part of the show.
For the first time (in many cases) viewers can see animals acting
totally
candidly.

Narrated by Sir David Attenborough, each of the eleven episodes in
this
series takes a look at another ecosystem or area. From the peaks
of the tallest mountains to the depths of the oceans, from pole to pole
and even into the interior of the planet, there is seemingly no type of
wilderness that is left unphotographed. Every episode is filled
with
amazing scenes of the local flora and fauna living out their lives, and
interesting facts about the habitat being examined.

This
series is all about stunning images. Viewers get to see the rare
Snow Leopard (with only 40 estimated to be living in the wild) hunting
in the Himalayas, running down-hill across rocky, near vertical,
terrain
in pursuit of a mountain goat. I can't imagine slowly
climbing
down that land, much less running full bore, leaping over rocks and
landing
gracefully on boulders. The migration of caribou is nearly as
impressive.
As the camera, focused on a small group, pulls out farther and farther
the herd goes from large to huge to gigantic to amazing. Three
million
animals travel together each year, and to see it up close and personal
is remarkable.

The only thing against the show is its lack of depth. While every
episode looks at one type of environment, none of them are really
looked
at closely. This isn't an examination of any one topic, but an
overview
of many. There were times where some more detail and background
information
would have been welcome. This is a minor complaint though, since
the information the show does give is so engaging and visually moving.

I would be remiss if I didn't note a word of warning about this
series.
It is about nature, and life in the wild can be violent and
short.
Animals die and many of them are eaten by predators. One of the
most
amazing shots in a series filled with amazing shots contains seals
swimming
in the sea. All of a sudden a large seal will disappear inside
the
mouth of a Great White Shark that leaps out of the water, swallowing
its
prey whole. There are sad parts too, such as the baby elephant
that
loses his mother in a sand storm while crossing the Gobi. The
young
thing was smart enough to follow his mother's footprints, but he
follows
them the wrong way, and slowly walks deeper into the desert and certain
death. This isn't the focus of the series, and these parts are in
the minority. And while none of the scenes are overly bloody or
gruesome,
young and sensitive children may be affected by these scenes.

The DVD:

These 11 episodes, about 50-minutes in length each, come on four
Blu-ray discs, then there are two discs filled with extras. These
each come in a paper sleeve which in turn are housed in a globe.
The northern hemisphere of the sphere opens up to reveal slots for all
of the discs as well as a sticker identifying it as a limited edition
set. (These are limited to 50,000 numbered sets.) The
coolest part is that the inside of the upper half is illustrated with a
forest scene, so it looks like you're laying on the ground looking up
the tall greenery. There are also four exclusive art cards
included. All
in all an attractive set.

Video:

These
discs present the show in 1080i, which is a step down from the 1080p
that the original release boasted. Doing an A/B comparison it
was clear that the differences were very minute and in a blind test I
can't imagine anyone watching a single episode could tell if it was the
progressive or interlaced version. In any case, the image looks
simply amazing.
If you want to show some guests just why you spent all of that money on
a Blu-ray player and HD display, just throw this puppy in and watch
their
eyes pop out. The level of detail is excellent, with individual
drops
of water being easy to discern when a whale exhales from its
blow-hole.
The colors are also stunning; they are bright, solid, and just pop off
the screen. From the radiance of an endless field of wild flowers
to the bright feathers of the Bird of Paradise, this set really brings
forth all of the hues in glorious brilliance. Likewise the
undersea
shots and low light images (such as winter in the Antarctic) are clear
and detailed with a wide range of gray tones.

Digital
defects,
mosquito noise, aliasing, and macro blocking are not a concern what so
ever. This is an excellent looking set that is sure to please the
most discriminating viewers.

Audio:

This set come with a nice DTS-HD 5.1 track in English and there are
optional
subtitles in English, French, and Spanish. This audio track is an
improvement over the original DD 5.1 audio. The sound is more
crisp and defined, which is most evident in the scenes where the
natural sounds of the planet are the only thing playing. The
whale songs in one episode sound magnificent and totally immerse the
viewer in the images on the screen. A very nice sounding set.

The lack of a lossless audio track is another strike against the
discs,
though the DD 5.1 doesn't have any noticeable defects or imperfections.

Extras:

I was disappointed in the lack of extras on the original release,
but this edition comes through in spades. First off there are
commentaries for 5 of the episodes by the producer of the
episode. You can hear them talk about the trials and tribulations
of filming on Pole to Pole,
Mountains, Caves, Great Plains, and Shallow Seas. There is also a
music-only option which I found really enjoyable. Playing an
installment without the narration creates a wonderful screen saver/
vitrual window onto a different part of the world. I'll strongly
consider having that up the next time I host a gathering at my house.

The meat of the bonus material are the video extras, and they're
quite impressive. Planet Earth
Video Diaries presents an extra 10 minutes of footage for each
episode that goes behind the scenes and shows what it took to create
the show. Great Planet Earth
Moments is another episode cobbled together from the best bits
of the series. If this doesn't sell you on the show, nothing
will.

There are also four nearly hour-long additional episodes: The Future: Living Together is one
of the best shows on conservation that I've ever seen. It
presents its message forcefully (we need to take better care of the
planet) but it isn't heavy-handed and all doom and gloom.
Honestly, most shows of this type that I watch are depressing and spend
most of their time blaming all of the problems on the viewer.
That's not the case with this show. It's interesting more than
depressing. Snow Leopard:
Beyond the Myth looks at the rare cats, Elephant Nomads of the Namib Desert takes
a close look at migrating pachyderms, and Secrets of the Maya Underworld
follows archeologists as they explore ruins in the Yucatan. All
three are engrossing and interesting and really add a lot to the whole
package. The bonus material is wrapped up with a 13-minute sneak
peek to Frozen Planet, a new
seven part documentary series that the BBC is producing along with the
Discovery Channel. A very cool set of extras.

Final Thoughts:

This is one amazing series. I've seen my share of wilderness
shows
in my time and I can safely say that this is the most impressive one,
hands
down. With jaw-dropping scenes, remarkable (while not being
dreary)
information and compelling narration, Planet Earth is a show
that
is a joy to watch. This Blu-ray set is reference quality, with a
picture that is so brilliant and detailed that it is going to be hard
to
beat. The extras included with this collection are wonderful and
the limited edition eye-catching packaging is very, very cool.
This should make it to the top of a lot of wish lists this holiday
season. It easily earns the DVDTalk
Collector Series rating.

Note: The images in this review are not from the Blu-ray disc
and do not necessarily represent the image quality on the disc.